Mississippi Waterfowl Seasons and Bag Limits Set

Jackson, MS- The Commission on Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks approved dates for the 2011-2012 waterfowl hunting seasons at their monthly meeting on July 19.

Duck, merganser, and coot seasons will be November 25 – November 27, 2011; December 2 – December 4, 2011; and December 7, 2011 – January 29, 2012. The duck daily bag limit will be a total of six ducks, including no more than four mallards (no more than two of which may be females), three wood ducks, two redheads, two scaup, two pintail, one canvasback, one mottled duck, and one black duck. The merganser daily bag limit will be a total of five mergansers, only two of which may be hooded mergansers. Coots will have a 15-bird daily bag limit. The possession limit is twice the daily bag limit for ducks, mergansers, and coots.

Late-season Canada goose and brant seasons will be November 21, 2011 – January 29, 2012. Canada geese will have a three-bird daily bag limit and brant will have a daily bag limit of two birds. The possession limit is twice the daily bag limit for Canada geese and brant.

Snow, blue, Ross’s, and white-fronted goose (white-fronted geese are known as “specklebellies” by many hunters) seasons will be from November 17, 2011 – January 29, 2012. Snow, blue, and Ross’s geese will have a daily bag limit of 20 birds. White-fronted geese will have a daily bag limit of two birds. In addition to the regular hunting season, there will be a conservation order for snow, blue, and Ross’s geese during the following dates: October 1 – November 18, 2011; January 30 – February 3, 2012; and February 6 – March 31, 2012 (only snow, blue, and Ross’s geese may be taken during the light goose conservation order). The possession limit for white-fronted geese is four and there is no possession limit for snow, blue, and Ross’s geese.

The youth waterfowl weekend will be during the weekend of February 4 – February 5, 2012. For more information about waterfowl hunting opportunities, please visit the website http://mdwfp.com/waterfowl.